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J. D. Atkins, PhD

  • Assistant Professor of New Testament Language and Literature
  • Department of Biblical and Exegetical Studies

Personal

​Dr. Atkins’ favorite part of teaching is helping students to discover and enjoy the riches of Scripture. He trains students in the nuts and bolts of exegesis but also wants them to learn to feast on the Word. He loves Tyndale’s international flavor because it encourages everyone to recognize their own biases and read Scripture with fresh eyes. Dr. Atkins previously taught in the US at Trinity Evangelical Divinity School, Marquette University, and Nashotah House Theological Seminary and in the Philippines at Asian Theological Seminary. He’s also worked in business and technology consulting and for several years led a ministry to intellectuals and skeptics at the University of Pennsylvania. He enjoys playing and watching football (a.k.a., soccer) and is a fan of science fiction, fantasy, and detective stories.

Dr. Atkins lives in Amstelveen, Netherlands with his wife, Alice, and their two sons. Alice, a Chinese American born in the Philippines, currently serves as the Associate National Director of Asian American Ministries for InterVarsity Christian Fellowship/USA (mem.intervarsity.org/bio/alice-atkins).

 

Education

  • B.S.E., Systems Engineering, University of Pennsylvania (Philadelphia, PA)
  • B.S., Economics, University of Pennsylvania (Philadelphia, PA)
  • M.Div., Westminster Theological Seminary (Philadelphia, PA)
  • Th.M., New Testament, Trinity Evangelical Divinity School (Deerfield, IL)
  • Ph.D., New Testament and Early Christian Literature, Marquette University (Milwaukee, WI)

 

Areas of Academic Interest

Dr. Atkins’s primary area of research is intertextuality in early Christian literature. His intertextual research revolves around three foci: source and redaction criticism in the Gospels, the NT use of the OT, and the reception of NT books during the second century. His first book, the Doubt of the Apostles and the Resurrection Faith of the Early Church, integrates all three of these foci in its reevaluation of the purpose of the resurrection narratives in Luke and John. His current research and writing projects explore the earliest reception of the Gospels and the origins of the NT canon.

Dr. Atkins’s other research interests include biblical hermeneutics, ancient genres and literary devices, the Corinthian Correspondence, the Pentateuch, early patristic and gnostic literature, and the origins and development of Christology.

Current Administrative Responsibilities

  • MET Thesis Program Director

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Professional and Ministry Experience

  • Adjunct Instructor of New Testament, Trinity Evangelical Divinity School-Milwaukee Extension, Milwaukee, WI
  • Adjunct Professor of New Testament and Greek, Nashotah House Theological Seminary, Nashotah, WI
  • Lead Instructor, Biblical Interpretation and Theology Program, Elmbrook Church, Brookfield, WI
  • Lecturer in New Testament and Theology, Marquette University. Milwaukee, WI
  • Visiting Faculty, New Testament, Asian Theological Seminary, Quezon City, Philippines.
  • Teaching Assistant, Theology Department, Marquette University, Milwaukee, WI
  • Teaching Fellow in New Testament Greek, Trinity Evangelical Divinity School, Deerfield, IL
  • Project Manager, CDI Corporation and IBM Global Services, Chicago, IL
  • Campus Minister, Intervarsity Christian Fellowship at the University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA
  • Principal Consultant. D. Atkins Consulting, LLC. New York, NY, Hoboken, NJ, and Philadelphia, PA
  • Associate Consultant, IBM Global Services. New York, NY
  • Lab Instructor/Teaching Assistant, Systems Engineering, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA
  • Management Intern, American Management Systems (now CGI Group), Fairfax, VA
  • Summer Intern, NASA Jet Propulsion Laboratory, Pasadena, CA

Academic Works, Presentations, and Theses Supervised

  • The Doubt of the Apostles and the Resurrection Faith of the Early Church. Wissenschaftliche Untersuchungen zum Neuen Testament 2/495. Tübingen: Mohr Siebeck, 2019.
  • “New Testament Use of the Old Testament, Methods.” In The Lexham Bible Dictionary. Edited by John D. Barry and Lazarus Wentz. Bellingham, WA: Logos Bible Software, 2015.
  • “The Trial of the People and the Prophet: John 5:30-47 and the True and False Prophet Traditions.” Catholic Biblical Quarterly 75 (2013): 279-96.
  • “Reassessing the Origins of Deuteronomic Prophecy: Early Moses Traditions in Deuteronomy 18:15-22.” Bulletin for Biblical Research 23 (2013): 323-41.
  • “Where Is It Written that the Christ Must Suffer? An Intertextual Clarification of Luke 24:44-46.” Paper presented at the Society of Biblical Literature Annual Meeting. San Diego, CA. November 24, 2019.
  • “Fitting Gnosis into the Biblical Timeline of Acts: The Apocryphon of James.” Paper presented at the Annual Meeting of the Evangelical Theological Society. November 15, 2018.
  • “Doubting Thomas before Heresy.” Paper presented at the Society of Biblical Literature Annual Meeting. San Antonio, TX. November 19, 2016.
  • “The Earliest Evidence for the Longer Ending of Mark.” Paper presented at the Annual Meeting of the Evangelical Theological Society. Atlanta, GA. November 17, 2015.
  • “Rewriting ‘Canonical’ Luke in the Period before Marcion and Valentinus.” Paper presented at the Society of Biblical Literature Annual Meeting. San Diego, CA. November 25, 2014.
  • “Some Neglected Evidence in the Early Reception of Luke (and Luke-Acts).” Paper presented at the Society of Biblical Literature Annual Meeting. Baltimore, MD, November 23, 2013.
  • “Reading Luke and Acts Together in the Period before Irenaeus.” Paper presented at the Annual Meeting of the Evangelical Theological Society. Baltimore, MD, November 21, 2013.
  • “‘Because of Your Unbelief, I Will Speak Again’: The Reception of the Post-Resurrection Doubts of the Apostles at Nag Hammadi.” Paper presented at the Society of Biblical Literature Annual Meeting. Chicago, IL, November 17, 2012.
  • “The Stigma of Doubt and the Stigmata of Christ: What the Criterion of Embarrassment and Second-Century Debates over Bodily Resurrection Tell Us about Luke 24:36-43.” Paper presented at the Annual Meeting of the Evangelical Theological Society. Milwaukee, WI, November 14, 2012.
  • “Editing Out Post-Resurrection Doubt: Revisiting Ignatius, Luke, and Anti-Docetic Apologetic.” Paper presented at the Annual Meeting of the North American Patristics Society. Chicago, IL, May 25, 2012.
  • “Twelve Prophets Like Moses: The Commissioning of the Apostles in the Epistula Apostolorum.” Paper presented at the Society of Biblical Literature Annual Meeting. San Francisco, CA, November 22, 2011.
  • “The Origins of Deuteronomic Prophecy: Early Moses Traditions in Deut 18:15-22.” Paper presented at the Society of Biblical Literature Annual Meeting. San Francisco, CA, November 20, 2011.
  • “The Trial of the Prophet and the People: True and False Prophet Traditions in John 5:30-47.” Paper presented at the annual meeting of the Midwest Region of the SBL. Olivet Nazarene University, Bourbonnais, IL, February 12, 2011.
  • “A Quest for Certainty: The Epistemological Basis of asphaleia in Luke-Acts.” Paper presented at the Society of Biblical Literature Annual Meeting. Atlanta, GA, November 20, 2010.
  • “Early Reception of the Gospels: Methodological Considerations.” Guest lecture for graduate NT seminar at Marquette University. Milwaukee, WI. November 7, 2017.
  • “Introduction to the Apocryphon of John and Gnostic Christology.” Guest lecture for graduate Patristics seminar at Marquette University. Milwaukee, WI. November 1, 2017.
  • “The Four-Gospel Canon: A Historical Survey.” Guest lecture given at Nashotah House Theological Seminary. Nashotah, WI. September 15, 2015.
  • “Bible Study Methods: Interpreting New Testament Narrative.” Two lectures given at Trinity Evangelical Divinity School – Milwaukee Extension. Milwaukee, WI. May 19-21, 2015.
  • “New Testament Manuscripts and Text Criticism: An Introduction.” Guest lecture for undergraduate course at Marquette University. Milwaukee, WI, February 4, 2013.
  •  “The Divine Name and Jesus in the Gospel of John.” Presentation given at the Marquette Scripture Project. Milwaukee, WI, November 30, 2011.
  • “Peeling the Onions: A Primer on How the Gospels Use the Old Testament.” Guest lecture given at Nashotah House Theological Seminary. Nashotah, WI, March 31, 2011.
  • “The Resurrection of Jesus in Ancient Perspectives: Significance and Scandal.” Guest lecture for undergraduate course at Marquette University. Milwaukee, WI, October 2, 2009.
  • “Evangelical Students in the Classroom.” Invited response for panel on “Religious Diversity in Higher Education” at the University of Pennsylvania. Philadelphia, PA, September 28, 2004.